Congressional maps update; preserving the Oretha Castle Haley House; support for veterans in NOLA

Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court balked at the prospect of confronting a lower court about its efforts to delay the redrawing of Louisiana’s congressional maps. Now many are left wondering if Gov. John Bel Edwards will do anything to address the redistricting question during the remainder of his term. Stephanie Grace, columnist and editorial director for The Times-Picayune/The Advocate, joins us to discuss the status of the case.  Last Saturday was Veterans Day, a time to honor service members throughout the country – about 15,000 of whom live in New Orleans. It’s not always easy for veterans to reconnect with their communities after returning from deployment.  Recently, Bastion Community of Resilience – a New Orleans-based intentional living community for veterans – helped launch the New Orleans Veterans Coalition, an organization that brings together former military members together for acts of service. Jackson Smith, executive director of Bastion, tells us how the new coalition aims to help veterans recovering from the physical and mental impacts of war. There’s a simple shotgun double in the 900 block of North Tonti Street in New Orleans’ Treme neighborhood that looks like countless others throughout the city. But what happened at this house in the 1950’s and ‘60’s shaped the Civil Rights Movement, not only in New Orleans, but across the nation. That house, home to activist Oretha Castle Haley and her family, is now on the National Register of Historic Places, thanks to the efforts of a Tulane University graduate student. That student, Robin Smith, joins us to talk about the importance of the house – and of preserving our historical places. Today’s episode of Louisiana Considered was hosted by Bob Pavlovich. Our managing producer is Alana Schreiber and our assistant producer is Aubry Procell. Our engineer is Garrett Pittman.  You can listen to Louisiana Considered Monday through Friday at 12 and 7 p.m. It’s available on Spotify, Google Play and wherever you get your podcasts.  Louisiana Considered wants to hear from you! Please fill out our pitch line to let us know what kinds of story ideas you have for our show. And while you’re at it, fill out our listener survey! We want to keep bringing you the kinds of conversations you’d like to listen to. Louisiana Considered is made possible with support from our listeners. Thank you!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.